Fisherman often find it desirable to clean their fish shortly after being caught on board their boats. Fish cleaning devices which can hold their fish in a fixed position on the outside of the boat for cleaning have been known for several years.
For example, Breckenridge (U.S. Pat. No. 3,561,043) discloses a boat-mounted holder for cleaning fish comprising a rigid trough structure formed with a vertical plate and an incline plate designed to hold a fish in a fixed position outside the boat. Cords attached at one end to hooks hold the trough structure in place along the outside surface of the boat's gunwale.
Lewis (U.S. Pat. No. 3,668,739) also discloses a fish cleaning trough adapted to be easily mounted to and removed from the gunwale of a boat. The trough, made of rigid material, has opened ends and is suspended over the water as the fish are cleaned. Securing means extend over the top surface of the gunwale to hold the trough over the water.
Heretofore, typical fish cleaning devices have several drawbacks. Most devices use rigid, deep trough structures to hold the fish which are large and bulky and take up valuable storage area on the boat when not in use. In addition, such devices cannot be used on all gunwales and hull designs. Hand rails, molding and ornament designs along the top surface of the gunwale often prevent these devices from being properly attached to the gunwale. The trough structures used with these devices usually presses against the outer surface of the hull during use. If the angle of the hull surface is improper, the device will not be properly positioned over the water.
In some instances, the cutting action and the boat movement can also cause these devices to move laterally along the gunwale making cleaning difficult. Wave action can also vertically lift the trough structure causing it to partially or completely break or dislodge from the gunwale.
Lastly, most fisherman find it desirable to remove the head and tail of the fish during the cleaning process. Typical fish cleaning devices available today do not provide a cutting board surface for removing the head or tail. With these devices, the head or tail must be extended over the trough structure for cutting. A flat cutting board disposed adjacent to the trough structure would be highly desirable.
A fish cleaning device, then, which addresses and resolves these drawbacks would be highly desirable.